Latest posts by Kevin Rothrock from June, 2014
TJournal.ru Says Enough With Russian Media's Ukraine Coverage

Responding to a flood of anti-Ukraine propaganda in the Russian mass media, the website TJournal has temporarily halted a service that aggregates news stories trending on the RuNet.
Propaganda Wars: Russian Twitter Account Takes on American “Progress” in Iraq

Someone writing in Russian has issued the latest Internet challenge to the US government, launching a Twitter account parodying Washington's "counter-propaganda" feed about events in Ukraine.
Russians See in US Government Spokesperson the “Heart of a Dog”

An unusual video clip – the latest in a series of Internet memes attacking Jen Psaki, the spokesperson for the US State Department – is circulating among Russians online.
Could Snowden Be Russia's Alfred Kinsey?

If Kinsey’s Big Data could show the reality of human sexual behavior, what might the total disintegration of online privacy reveal about all kinds of political behavior?
Russian Bureaucracy’s Race to Police the Web

"...the most frightening truth may be that Russia’s law enforcement agencies don’t always wait for lawmakers to grant them formal authority when it comes to policing the Internet."
Twitter's Game of Cat and Mouse in Russia

A pattern is emerging in the relationship between the Kremlin and Twitter, where Moscow makes sweeping demands of the website and then touts the resulting compromise as a victory.
Russia Claims to Have Forced Twitter into Submission Ahead of Crowell's Moscow Visit

Ahead of a meeting between Twitter and Russia’s chief censorship outfit, Moscow is signaling that Internet giants like the world’s most popular microblogging service must conform to Russian sovereignty.
Russia Says the Internet Spreads Extremism

Russia’s Interior Ministry has drafted a ten-year strategy for countering violent extremism. The plan identifies the Internet as the main conduit for extremism and calls for new policing measures.
Russia's Hacker Collective That Wasn't

There is a new Internet group in Russia that publishes compromising political information that the public was never supposed to see. But who's behind it all?
Global Voices Seeks Contributing Editor for RuNet Echo Project

Global Voices is seeking a part-time Contributing Editor to support our coverage of Russian citizen media, as part of our RuNet Echo project.
Tor's Skyrocketing Popularity in Russia

Since mid-August 2013, the average daily number of Russian users of the Tor anonymity network, a free software for enabling online anonymity and resisting censorship, has multiplied fourfold.
Russian Emigration in the Internet Age

Russia’s emigration in the Internet Age: people leave—to escape, to explore, and to unwind—but nobody really disconnects.
Meeting with Putin, Industry Leaders Ditch Users on Digital Rights

Vladimir Putin attended a much-anticipated meeting with Russian Internet industry leaders in Moscow today. Did they discuss Internet freedom? Barely.
Celebrating Russian Crimea with a Candy

A Russian chocolate company in Novosibirsk has released a new candy bar called “The Crimea” with the slogan, “Just try to grab it!” A product announcement shared with the press...
Russian City Hosts Pole Dancing Performance on International Children's Day

Last Sunday, Tolyatti celebrated its 277th birthday and International Children's Day. Ironically, it also hosted an outdoor pole dancing performance at a car show.
3 Ways the Russian Government Plans to Police the Web

Several state agencies in Russia are now involved in drafting bylaws that will determine how officials actually enforce a series of controversial new Internet regulations.